


Vento d'oro

by WritingNeverending



Category: Psychonauts (Video Games)
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, Cross-Posted on Tumblr, F/M, Fluff, Fluff without Plot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-17
Updated: 2020-08-17
Packaged: 2021-03-06 01:26:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,023
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25955179
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WritingNeverending/pseuds/WritingNeverending
Summary: Downtime came few and far in between for a Psychonaut operative, but they would always find a way to make it work.
Relationships: Razputin Aquato/Lili Zanotto
Kudos: 9





	Vento d'oro

Downtime came few and far in between for a Psychonaut operative, especially in times of turmoil. Over the years, Raz and Lili had learned how to best use what little time they had to enjoy themselves. Fortunately, since their duties frequently required them to journey all over the globe, they were spoiled rotten with activities to choose from, even with the limitations in place.

An illegal psitanium smuggling ring deep in the jungles of Brazil? Wash off the muck with some sea, surf, and sun on the coast of Rio. A disgraced scientist committing unethical paranormal experiments in her secret lab high in the peaks of the Alps? Indulge themselves with skis and snow fights on the way down. A plot to overthrow the French government involving psychic weaponry? Experience exactly why Paris is known as the City of Love, by engaging in love in its many forms.

This mission was no different. The dossier stated they were to ambush an elusive Italian baron at a prestigious charity event. What they read was a lovely stroll down the Italian _riviera_. 

Though it’ll be even lovelier if Raz wasn’t dressed in what amounted to a Mario cosplay.

“Are you high.”

Raz didn’t budge. He stood there, posing like he’s the picture of an Italian gentleman. “ _Ciao, caro_ ,” he purred with half-lidded eyes.

Lili pinched the bridge of her nose. The headaches weren’t supposed to start now. “You know how to use Google Translate. Congratulations.”

That got him to start pouting. “ _You_ said I should get better at keeping a low profile.” He gestured to his outfit. “I’m trying my best to blend in with the locals here.”

“You’re trying your best to lose your dignity.” Lili sighed. People were starting to stare too. “At least stick with English, please? I’m just as much a tourist here as you are.”

“Wait, wait, I have better ones.” Raz pulled out his phone from his back pocket. At least he didn’t see Lili rolling her eyes. “Uh, _questa è una bella giornata, ma non adorabile come te. I tuoi capelli so-_ ”

“Raz, I will turn this date around.”

“Okay, okay, just- one more chance. Please?” Raz pleaded, rapidly scrolling through his phone.

Lili had to step forward and wrench that phone down. “Do you want me to start talking to you in bad Russian?”

“N-no…” he mumbled, checks growing red.

“Then this is perfectly fine.”

Raz rubbed the back of his neck. “Sorry. I thought this is going to blow you away.”

“I know. And I love you for it.” She patted his adorable, blushing cheek. “Now get out of that ridiculous getup. We’re burning daylight.”

The _riviera_ is a beautiful place. The gorgeous architecture, the glistening sea, the golden sun hanging low; it was a vision plucked straight from heaven. The breeze was light and pleasant, not too warm or too chilly. Lucky them for managing to snag a break at this hour too. Any time of day had its own charm, but Lili personally preferred the sunsets.

People stopped staring once Raz changed back to a much more normal outfit. They caught a few glances, as most tourists were wont to do, but people mostly kept to themselves, which was just how Lili liked it. Raz cracked a joke about how they’re just not used to seeing such beautiful people among them. Lili wasn’t ashamed to admit that the thought flattered her.

Their walk eventually led them to a shaded bench by the pier. Neither of them really said anything about needing a break. They both just happened to decide to have a sit down. The silence lingered, and it was beautiful, interrupted only by golden winds rustling the shade.

“You ever feel like a jerk?” Raz just had to ask, ruining the beautiful silence. “Using Psychonauts money to go on paid vacations like this?”

“We’re the two best agents in the force. I’d like to see them try and stop us.” Lili scoffed. “Besides, this isn’t vacation. We’re smack dab in the middle of the baron’s territory. We are risking our lives right now. His goons can jump out and attack us at any second. Both of us could die before sunset.”

Raz stared ahead at the golden rays of the descending sun, at the gentle lapping of the waves against the pier. The breeze picked up, warm and comforting like a loved one’s embrace. 

“Yep,” he said, smiling, shaking his head. “ _Feel_ that mortal peril.”

The beautiful silence returned. But not the peace. Lili fidgeted in her seat. She was the one who joked about them dying, and now the thought wouldn’t leave her. Worse, it began to branch out. Now she’s thinking about her future, and her life with Raz, and the agency, and the paranormal world, and _dammit_ this was supposed to be her break.

Lili glanced to her side, where Raz remained hypnotized by the waves, still smiling. He always made it clear she could be completely open around him.

“Do you… ever think about what comes next?”

“About this specific mission or just in general?”

“No, I mean-” Lili sighed. “What happens after… everything. After we’re done.”

Raz turned to meet her eyes, his trance broken. “Done?”

“We can’t do this forever, Raz,” she said. A confession, to Raz and to herself. “At some point, for one reason or another, we both have to stop.”

She watched his eyes grow distant, unfocused. His silence stretched from seconds to minutes. Couldn’t really blame him for it. She practically ambushed him with the question.

“Can’t say it ever crossed my mind,” he answered, eventually. Somehow, that answer didn’t surprise her.

“But, if I’m being honest… that’s not the kind of ending that I saw for our story,” he continued, chuckling not from joy. Now _that_ surprised her. “This isn’t really the kind of life that leads to a retirement home, you know?”

Lili nodded without meaning to. She knew it all too well. All the close calls. All the times they barely missed the reaper’s scythe. All the times they survived through nothing but dumb luck. One day, that luck would run out.

“Then humor me,” she said, quickly. She’d like nothing more than to leave this topic behind. “In the unlikely chance that we _do_ live long enough, what do you think you’ll do?”

Raz blew out a breath. He let his gaze wander up, to the darkening sky. The silence that followed was another long one. She owed him something to make up for putting him through the wringer like this.

“I think… I’ll teach,” he answered. It sounded unsure, at first, but his resolve rose by the moment. “Yeah. Yeah! I’ll be a counselor at camp. The kids’ll love me.” 

Lili laughed. It’s been so long since the madhouse that was Whispering Rock entered her mind. “You’d willingly wager your sanity like that?”

“I had worse odds,” he said, shrugging. His confidence was adorable.

But that’s why she fell for him in the first place, right? “For what it’s worth, I think you’re gonna do great too.”

“What about you? Got plans?”

Right. Her turn. She’d like to say she had an answer prepared ahead of time, but that’d be a big, fat lie.

“Eh. Nothing solid. Probably something to do with plants. Big shocker, I know.”

Raz rolled his eyes, and now it’s her turn to chuckle like an awkward idiot. Just her luck, then, that a much clearer image flashed into her mind’s eye. Could’ve used that five seconds ago. But she’s no complainer.

“Yeah. I’d like a garden. A big one. And a greenhouse too - something real and proper. Not the broom closet back at base.”

“A garden _and_ a greenhouse? Just one’s not enough?” Raz raised an eyebrow at her.

Lili raised an eyebrow right back. “You think I’d let the changing of the seasons interrupt _my_ hobby?”

“You’d kill Satan himself if he so much as look at your plants the wrong way.”

“Exactly.”

Raz burst out laughing. “Man, we gotta make that happen! If Satan dies, that’s it. We just win forever.”

That earned him a giggle out of Lili. “Be my guest,” she conceded. “I’m not putting ‘how to summon Satan’ in my search history.”

“Hm. That’s because you’re a coward.”

Oh, _wow_. Now _that_ earned him a jab on the shoulder. Not that he’d feel anything. His muscles are rock solid. Still. She laid her head against the spot where she hit him, just in case he did get a boo-boo.

The waves danced. The sun was halfway over the horizon. Golden rays took on darker shades. Street lights flickered to life. Time ticked along without pause.

“You know,” Lili said, “if we settle down, I wouldn’t mind a view like this.”

Raz took out his phone and snapped a quick picture. “There,” he grinned. “Now I just gotta print that out and frame it. Easy peasy.”

Lili rolled her eyes, but her smile betrayed her. “Amazing. Ever tried stand up comedy?”

“I did. Remember?”

“Oh… yeah… you did, didn’t you.” Lili shivered at the memory. Their late teenage years were dark days best left forgotten. “Must’ve repressed that.”

Raz snorted. “I _wish_ I could repress that.”

Lili grimaced and shook her head. She’s recollecting more and more of the incident by the second. The image in her head grew more vivid against her will. They needed a new topic far removed from this one, fast.

“I _was_ going to ask where you’d like to settle down-”

“But you know I’m just going to answer with, ‘anywhere is fine as long as I’m with you’?” Raz cut in without missing a beat.

If Lili was drinking, she would’ve sprayed it all over the pier. Yeah, he’s psychic, but still. “God, we’ve been together too long.”

“I do mean that,” Raz said, quietly, once he’s laughed his lungs out. “As long as I’m with you, I can settle down anywhere in the world, and I’ll be happy.”

Lili could feel her cheeks heating up. She must look red as a rose right now. How could this idiot keep doing this to her? “There you go again,” she mumbled through a pout. “You either make it too sappy or you ruin the mood. You’re such a two-trick pony.”

“Hey, if it works,” Raz shrugged, but the smirk on his lips told her that he knew exactly what he’s doing to her.

Lili huffed. A smirk crept up to her lips too. She knew exactly how to even the score.

“It’s certainly working.” Lili hooked a finger on his collar and pulled him in close. _Real_ close. “It’s working even better than you could have imagined.”

She didn’t give him to process, or react. Her lips crashed against his, hard. With tongue. _Lots_ of tongue. The few people on the pier stared, but she didn’t care. She’s on break, dammit.

They had to break apart, unfortunately. Needing to breathe and all that. Raz was a red-faced, panting mess. Lili felt smug as all hell, and she had no compunction about showing it.

The sun vanished over the horizon. Night fell over the world. The stars and the moon peeked through the clouds.

The _beep beep beep_ of an alarm interrupted the breeze, followed by another. Lili pulled out her phone, Raz pulled out his.

Time was up. Duty calls.

Lili blew a long sigh, casting her gaze to shifting waves. “And our normal life ends, just like that.”

Raz rose from the bench to a full body stretch. His eyes were alight, ignited by the promise of thrills and action. He’s in full mission mode already.

“Aw, chin up, Lil. Look on the bright side! We finally get to give that nasty baron the ol’ Flower Goggles combo!”

God. It’s that awful ‘team name’ again. “Don’t make me root for him.”

“It’s going to be a thing!”

“It’s not.”

Raz offered his hand to her, almost as if inviting her to a dance.

“Here’s to the next time we can pretend to be normal again.”

Smiling, Lili accepted his hand. Time to dance.

**Author's Note:**

> This fic was commissioned by nsart over on Tumblr, who wanted some older Raz and Lili fluffy times, and basically gave me free reign on exactly what that entails. So sorry for the delay. I had to scrap this fic and start over from scratch several times while writing it. It ended up being this really chill piece of Raz and Lili literally just talking to each other. I hope you’re happy with how it turned out. 
> 
> If you'd like to support me and my writing, please do check out my Tumblr right [here](https://chronicler-of-legends.tumblr.com/)!


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